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Siesta residents protest variance requests

Sarasota County commissioners have responded to at least 15 emails from Siesta Key residents opposed to construction on two Beach Road lots west of the Terrace condominium complex.

The County Commission will hold a public meeting Jan. 9, to consider requests to build four-story homes with pools on the properties, which lie seaward of state and county lines that regulate construction.

Last Januar, countu staff began evaluating the lots, construction on which also requires building permits and approval from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, according to a staff report from Sarasota County Environmental Specialist Howard Berna.

Construction on each lot would affect more than 4,000 square feet of dune vegetation. The proposers have offered to remove invasive species from other dune areas and plant about 800 square feet of new vegetation.

Critics of the proposal in emails to commissioners cited concerns about protecting the shoreline and nesting habitat for threatened shorebirds, such as snowy plovers.

Those wishing to speak at the public hearing must arrive before the agenda item and fill out a speaker card.